APW20000311.0131 NEWS STORY 2000-03-11 20:00 Fake Explosive Device Found on Jet

SEATTLE (AP) -- An Alaska Airlines jetliner bound for the Los Angeles area turned back and made an emergency landing Saturday afternoon after a fake explosive device was found in a carry-on bag.

Chutes on the MD-80 series airliner were deployed and passengers slid to the ground, Seattle-Tacoma International Airport spokesman Bob Parker said. He said two people suffered minor injuries from the slide and were treated at the scene and released.

Parker said the bag was found under a seat and no one on board the Ontario, Calif.-bound jet claimed it, so the pilots turned around for Seattle.

''It's a piece of carry-on luggage designed to look like it has an explosive inside, with wires and such,'' Parker said, adding that it was not the type of training device used by the airport. He did not know which airline or organization would use such a device.

The incident was being treated by Port of Seattle Police as a criminal investigation, Parker said.

''The question is, was it left over from a training exercise or did someone put it on the aircraft with bad intent?'' he said.

An Alaska Airlines spokesman did not immediately return a call seeking comment Saturday.

AP-NY-03-11-00 2000